According to reports from Polygon, the Electronic Software Ratings Board has confirmed that it will be giving Hatred an AO rating. The organization has yet to offer any specific reason for the Adult rating. Commenting on the AO rating, a developer working for Destructive Creation has expressed disappointment with the board’s decision.

“I would prefer to get a standard M+ rating, because with AO we will have problems to to get to consoles in the future,” said the unnamed developer in a posting to the studio’s forums. They would go on to further express surprise that Hatred received such a high rating considering its lack of sexual content. Prior to Hatred, the only the game to receive an Adults Only rating for violence alone was Rockstar’s Manhunt 2.

Hatred was revealed to gamers back in October 2014 via a gameplay trailer. The game earned notoriety almost immediately thanks to its extreme premise which drops players into the shoes of a deranged killer tasked with slaughtering as many innocent people as possible. Prior to the ESRB’s rating announcement, Hatred also found itself under fire by Valve, which pulled the game from its Greenlight crowd approval platform. That situation ended with Valve co-founder Gabe Newell stepping in to reinstate the game to Greenlight.

According to an announcement posted to the Humble Bundle website, the changes will affect all Steam games purchased after January 12th, 2015. Valve’s reasons for dropping OAuth support weren’t specified in the announcement.

Humble Bundle launched OAuth key redemption about a year ago. Prior to its launch, Steam games purchased in Bundle sales would be delivered to gamers via key codes that customers could redeem through the Steam desktop client. Unfortunately, this practice also led to a swathe of individuals purchasing games on the cheap through bundles and the selling them at a discounted prices through CD-key re-sellers. OAuth helped to lessen this practice by replacing the keys with a simple redemption button that added a game to your account with a single, simple button click.

We’ve reached out to Valve to see if we can find out more information.

Now that 2014 is officially behind us, it’s a good chance to look back at all that happened in video games — some good, some bad, some provocative.

We publish a lot of features here at GameFront, and sometimes our favorites get overlooked. In an effort to show off the articles we’re most proud of from last year, we’re happy to present – in no particular order — our choices for GameFront’s 10 best features of 2014.

No-Win Situation: The Troubled History of Firefall

This three part series digs into what happened with the “restructuring” of Red 5 Studios and the long-running development of its MMO shooter, Firefall. After speaking with a number of former studio employees, our Phil Hornshaw put together a profile of life at the studio that chronicled the saga of Firefall’s development, including the founding of the company, the roller-coaster ride of investment and missed goals, and the eventual ouster of Mark Kern as chief executive officer.

Steam sales are the savior of every gamer’s collection, and the bane of every gamer’s wallet. In an effort to help you make those crucial decisions on whether or not to buy that game on Steam, we created this handy flowchart. It takes into account not only the price of the game, but several other factors as well.

After the release of Destiny, GameFront Senior Editor Phil Hornshaw got heavily involved in Bungie’s online shooter. As he progressed through the game, he documented his experiences in a series called The Destiny Diaries. The best of those diaries was the second one, in which Phil talks about the the Crucible, Destiny’s player vs. player.

His love/hate relationship with the PvP, combined with his realization that you should play it it justlike Halo, makes this the highlight of the series.

GameFront Editor-in-Chief Janelle Bonanno teamed up with Ryan Morrison, a practicing attorney in New York specializing in video game and technology law who is often found answering gaming legal questions on Reddit as “VideoGameAttorney,” to talk about the trademark battle surrounding The Banner Saga and King.com’s Candy Crush Saga. In this feature, they explain what trademark is, how it works, and what it really means to video games. What did this trademark battle mean in the long run? Click the link to find out!

Surprising absolutely no one, it looks like Five Nights at Freddy’s 3 is an imminent possibility.

The above image appeared today on Five Nights at Freddy’s developer Scott Cawthon’s website, scottgames.com. As Freddy’s fans will note, the image shows golden Freddy, doing his “I look creepy and murderous” thing. The tagline “I’m still here” pretty much speaks for itself.

A Reddit thread about the teaser has popped up and provides a high-contrast edit of the image, showing a little more detail.

Also playing into the idea of a teaser for a new Freddy’s release is the image’s name, “fnaf3.jpg”, which appears to be the acronym for the third game.

A third Freddy’s game isn’t too shocking at this point, given Cawthon’s speedy release of Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, which takes the original game’s underlying concept — looking at surveillance cameras and reacting to lethal animatronic animals who appear on them — and switches up the mechanics to require more micro-management from players. Things like turning a crank on a music box, keeping an eye on specific locations and quickly slipping on a bear mask to hide from incoming enemies replaced the first game’s power management gameplay.

Cawthon seems to be a speedy developer in any case, and with the success of the Freddy’s games so far, it seems likely he’ll continue to capitalize on their popularity before the market gets saturated with imitators. If and when Five Nights at Freddy’s 3 does hit Steam, we’ll be sure to force Video Producer Mitchell Saltzman to play it on our Twitch channel.

The mouse is one of those awesome accessories that makes PC gaming great, so why not bring that level of control and precision over to The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth? Mouse control is, by default, removed from this gross rogue-like adventure shooter, but if you’re willing to dive into the .ini files in the install folder, there’s an easy way to make the mouse usable again.

Just remember that the mouse isn’t a supported control style, so there may be issues. With the warning out of the way, check out the quick guide below where we explain where to go, what files to open, and what text strings to change. If you’re inexperienced, remember to always save an unaltered back-up copy when making changes to important game files.

Take control of your server in Unturned with new admin commands, giving you a wide range of options for kicking griefers, banning problem players, or introducing some extra challenge. Admin commands give you way more control over the randomly generated zombie apocalypse, so any would-be or current server admins need to check out the list below.

This is a Steam Early Access title, so changes will continue to roll out before the official release. If there’s a major change we need to make, drop us a comment and continue to check GameFront for additional content

Online Server Admin Commands

Type HINT into the text window to see a list of commands. When inputting player names to Kick, Ban, Unban, etc: Player names or Steam ID names can be input partially and still function corrrectly.

Note: If a commands is followed by [##] — this indicates a number. Replace all of “[##]” with a number of your choice. Some entries will feature [Player] or [Item##] — replace these entries the same way.

Commands List

To use with the in-game chat, use @ before each command.

@Admin [Player]
Grants admin abilities to a player. Now they can use the listed admin commands.

@Ban [Player]/[Comment]/[BanTime##]
Bans the player from the server. Banned players cannot rejoin until an allotted time passes. By default a ban lasts one year. Optionally, replace “[Comment]” with a message to state a reason for the ban. The “[BanTime##]” is counted in seconds.

@Day
Sets the game timer to day.

@Give [Player]/[ItemID##]/[Number of Items ##]
Gives the indicated players with a specific item. Entering in [Number of Items ##] gives the specified amount of spawned-in items.

@Kick [Player]/[Comment]
Kicks the player from the server. Kicked players can rejoin at any time. Optionally, replace “[Comment]” with a message to state a reason for the kick.

@Maxplayers [##]
Sets the max number of players allowed on the server.

@Night
Sets the game timer to night.

@Save
Saves the current server’s data.

@Say [Comment]
Send messages with the [Server] tag replacing your name in chat.

@Shutdown
Deactivates the server and automatically saves status. All players will be kicked from the server.

@Slay [Player]
Instantly kills and automatically bans the indicated player for the default year.

@Teleport [Player]/[DestinationPlayer]
Teleports one player to another. You can also replace “[DestinationPlayer]” with a Location ID ##.

@Time [##]
Sets the time.

@Unadmin [Player]
Removes admin status from the indicated player.

@Unban [Player]
Lifts the ban, allowing the unbanned player to rejoin your server.

@Unpermit [Player]
Removes permit from indicated player.

@Vehicle [Player]/[VehicleID##]
Spawns in the indicated vehicle near the player.

@Zombie [Player]/[Zombies##]
Spawns zombie enemies near a player. Replace “[Zombies##]” with the number of zombies you want to spawn.

New to The Binding of Isaac? Thanks to the Steam Winter sale and a recent re-release, more people are playing this indie gem than ever. So we’ve collected up every extra article, Easter egg, and guide to list them below for easy browsing. There aren’t exactly cheats in the latest version of Isaac, but there are definitely codes.

Scroll down and check back later for new links, and drop us a comment if there’s something you think we need. Isaac is a massive game with tons of secrets, but it’s also painfully random. Check out the awesomely useful Binding of Isaac Wiki while playing for an easy resource explaining what all those weird items actually do.

Take a trip through the indie gems of yester-year with the GameFront crew on the latest complete video walkthrough. This time the team tackles To the Moon for an emotional journey through a dying man’s memories.

The opening of the sale was announced today in a press release. According to the release, the sale opens today and will run “through January 2, 2015.” Customers interested in taking advantage of the saelc an expect daily featured deals as well as “special deals” that will shift and change every 12 hours. Steam users will also have the opportunity to vote on “Community Choice promotion[s]” that will result in certain games receiving even heftier price cuts.

While today’s launch is exciting, it’s not likely to come as much of a surprise to many gamers. Reports and evidence pointing to a December 18 start day began surfacing as early as last week. What will likely remain more of a curiosity to gamers is when Valve will re-launch its Holiday Auction. A new event debuted on Steam earlier this month, the company was forced to shut it down after some customers discovered ways to unfairly exploit its Gem system.

The restrictions, initially reported by users at the forum NeoGAF, prevent customers in Russia and other surrounding territories from gifting products on Steam to players in other regions around the world. A gamer in Russia, for instance, currently can’t buy a game and gift it to a Steam user in the United States.

The restrictions have been put in place to combat the exploitation of low currency values which have made it possible for enterprising customers to get their hands on cheap video games by purchasing them in foreign markets. This has been an especial problem recently thanks to the fast and dramatic decline of the Russian ruble. Gamers taking advantage of the situation have been able to grab games between $40 and $60 for mere dollars.

We’ve reached out to Valve for more information and will update our readers as we learn more.

Newell offered his apology to the studio earlier today after learning that his colleagues at Valve had pulled the game from the Greenlight section of its distribution service. In an email later posted to Destructive Creations’ Facebook page, Newell stated that the removal “wasn’t a good decision” and said the game had been put back up on Greenlight.

“Yesterday I heard that we were taking Hatred down from Greenlight. Since I wasn’t up to speed, I asked around internally to find out why we had done that. It turns out that it wasn’t a good decision, and we’ll be putting Hatred back up,” explained Newell. “My apologies to you and your team. Steam is about creating tools for content creators and customers.” He ended his message by wishing the studio “good luck” with their game.

Hatred was originally pulled yesterday due to objections over its controversial subject content. Putting players in the role of a deranged gunman, the game will focus on simulating mass shootings. Speaking about it yesterday, Valve’s VP of marketing Doug Lombardi described it as a game Valve “would not publish” on Steam. Before it was banned, Hatred had reached the seventh highest ranking in Greenlight with more than 13,000 user votes.

Dark Souls is switching over to Steam for it’s online future and leaving Games for Windows Live behind. Owners of the previous version can still transfer achievements and their save game file between December 16 and February 16th. Check out the post below for full instructions on how to make the transition.

CASE 1: If you already purchased Dark Souls™ Prepare To Die Edition prior to December 15th, the following process will be available to February 16th for you to transfer your Save Data and Achievements.

For users who purchased a Game for Windows live version from a retailer (Disc) or Games for Windows Live Marketplace (Digital):

1. We recommend that you add Dark Souls™ Prepare To Die to your Steam account using your serial

2. Launch the game and connect to Games for Windows Live.

3. Run the game (only the currently signed-in user’s Save Data and Achievements can be transferred to Steam).

4. Close the Game.

5. Right click on your game in the Steam Library, go into Properties, check that the BETA tab is set to “dsptde-2.0-“

6. Launch Dark Souls™ Prepare To Die Edition v2.0 from Steam

7. The game will look for previous Save Data and Achievements. If Save Data and Achievements are detected on your computer, you should be able to continue your progress in the game. Achievements should be unlocked in Steam.

For users who purchased a Game for Windows live version from Steam:

1. Launch the game and connect to Games for Windows Live.

2. Run the game (only the currently signed-on user’s progress can be transferred to Steam).

3. Close Games for Windows Live

4. Right click on your game in the Steam Library, go into Properties, check that the BETA tab is set to “dsptde-2.0-“

5. Launch Dark Souls™ Prepare To Die Edition v2.0 from Steam

6. Sign in using the same live profile used in step-2 to import your Save Data and Achievements from the Games for Windows Live version to the Steam version for the same profile (gamertag)

7. The game will look for previous Save Data and Achievements. If they are detected on your computer, you should be able to continue your progress in the game and achievements should be unlocked in Steam.

CASE 2: For users who purchase Dark Souls™ Prepare To Die Edition between December 15th and February 16th:

1. Once the game is downloaded, right click on your game in the Steam library, go into properties, check that the BETA tab is set to “dsptde-2.0-“. The game may ask you to create a Game for Wwindows Live Account, simply discard this request

2. Launch Dark Souls™ Prepare To Die Edition v2.0 from Steam.

CASE 3: For users who purchase Dark Souls™ Prepare To Die Edition on or after February 16th (this will be the steam only version):

The goal of every level in I Am Bread is simple: get toasted. Any object giving off sufficient heat will work, but that isn’t always clear. Don’t waste time checking every item in the room, scroll through the lists below to see what objects burn bread in no time flat.

Parody simulators are all the rage on the PC, so why not check out the Surgeon Simulator cheats page and see all the bizarre hidden secrets, alien autopsies, and Easter eggs. Or press play on James vs. Surgeon Simulator and watch as GameFront’s video team struggles with it’s purposefully awful controls.

Toasting Guide

Note: There may be more ways to toast bread. Drop us a comment if you’ve found another method.

To toast your bread and complete the level you’ll need to reach a hot object. Some need to be activated — the television needs to be smashed before it will heat toast.

For raised objects like ceiling lights, you’ll need to grip and hold onto the hot light until fully toasted. A meter will appear at the top of the screen showing your progress.

Check below to see what objects in each level will toast bread. Getting to these objects is up to you — using grip and movement, bread can carefully scale any surface free of mold. With enough precision, bread can scale walls and even cross the ceiling.

Level 1: Kitchen

Toaster

Open Oven

Stove Top

Ceiling Lights

Active Rocket Exhaust

Level 2: Lounge

Note: To activate the TV top, climb up to the shelves and push the bowling ball onto the television. Sparks will pour out, now you can drop down and use the hot surface to toast.

Valve has shut down Steam’s Holiday Auctions a day after they were launched.

The Holiday Auctions were launched for the first time yesterday and game Steam users the opportunity to trade in their unwanted Inventory items for “Steam Gems.” These Gems could then be used to make bids on a selection of games.

Unfortunately, after the Auctions opened reports began to surface of some Steam user’s Gems randomly disappearing. Some users also found ways to exploit the Auction’s recycling system so that they were receiving a exorbitant number of Gems for ridiculously low prices. This led to a ripple effect that threw off the Auction’s economy.

Valve, in response, has temporarily shut the Auctions down and will refund all the Gems spent in the event to their respective owners. All Gem purchases from the community market are likewise being reimbursed. Valve affirmed that the Auctions will be return again at some point in the near future. Anyone who traded items in exchange for Steam Gems will also be given Counter-Strike: Global Offensive as compensation.

The new event, announced by the company in a press release, will give Steam users the opportunity to “recycle” unused items from their Steam Inventory pages for a chance to bid on “nearly 200,000 new games.”

To do this, customers can trade in their Steam Inventory items for new “Steam Gems.” These gems can then be used to make bids on games, with new auction rounds “happening every 45 minutes.” The current cycle of auctions will come to a close on Dec. 15 at 10:45am. More information about the process itself can be found at the newly launched Steam Auction FAQ page.

As interesting as this new event is, the big question on most Steam user’s minds is when Valve will confirm the launch date of its annual Winter Sale. Current rumors have it pegged to launch next week, but we’re still awaiting confirmation from the company.